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Hello,December 2012 is here, and we have some news (and special dates!) to share with you.

There will be a prescreening of AMSTERDAM STORIES for the American Club.

We will be holding the official World Première this month in Amsterdam at the IDFA – the biggest international documentary festival. An event, as the film is going to be shown twice in it’s integral version (6 hours) on November 19 & 21.

The first screening on RTBF (Belgian TV) in January, one chapter each Tuesday (4×90′ : East-South-Midwest-West)

We are now in negotiations with the Dutch & Flemish television for further distribution.

The 6-hour film is going to be shown in the US in 2013. When ? It’s still a question… Wait & see… We keep you informed !

All very amazing news that we are thrilled to share with you. The film is all but complete. Now, the rest of the world can share in the stories that we have kept so close to our hearts during this one-of-a-kind journey,

Houston would be our last stop. There, on the steps leading to our hotel, we said our goodbyes. Rogier and Rob head an afternoon flight for Brussels, Ben flew straight to NYC, and Matt headed to Syracuse. A few hugs, and the taxi man drives you away.

And a big thank you to the radio stations, news magazines, and newspapers that were there with us every state we hit.

6 States, 14 hotels, thousands of miles. But none of that compares to the amazing people we met. More so than any other journey, every state we went to had its own life. Each state had something to really hold onto.

Packing up your things, grabbing the pavement, and heading out onto the road, that’s something that is distinctly, and beautifully, American. And here we were, two foreigners and two Americans, going off and trying to do something that has never been done before. But through all this — through the miles, the hotels, the restaurants, the ups and the downs, the backroads, and the dead-ends — one thing has remained true: it’s the people that make this country great. They didn’t have to let us into their homes, but they did. They didn’t have to meet us for coffee, show us onto their pontoon boat, reveal parts of themselves, but they did.

Nowadays, it’s easy to lose sight on the good in people. It’s easy to write people off as rude, as uncaring. A person does you wrong, the actions of people on the news get you down — it’s become the thing nowadays to not trust people, to stick close to what we know and hold tight to that. But from town to town, we found how that belief kept falling to the side. People are good. People do let you into your home and treat you like family. People surprise you. People change and people grow. You can come in with a preconceived idea of someone, and two days later, everything you thought you knew goes right out the window. That’s an amazing thing.

We don’t know everything. And we don’t really know what makes a person until we take the time to get to know them. The people we met during these five weeks are as unique as anyone could be. But never once did they push us aside, never once did they tell us to go somewhere else. It takes great compassion to believe in the good in others. It takes care to know that people aren’t what they seem.

We set off to show America. We set off to show our audience that America is full of many different kinds of people, many different voices, and many different lives. But through it all, we are bound together by life. And in the end, these differences actually bring us together.

Once again, endless thanks to the great people of New York, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas. You made this journey incredible. We thank you, from the bottom of our hearts. And it’s nice to know that wherever life takes us, we always have a place in your home to hang our hats and catch up on old times.

We closed out our time in Mississippi this week. We thought we could get a top shot on the roof of town hall, but that didn’t come through. Instead, we adjusted. We found these kids who ride horses across the town, we found little pockets of the Old Amsterdam that still exist. Thankfully, we didn’t find any snakes! Edwards, MS began as a town we didn’t really know what to do with — could it work? do we have enough to go with? how are we going to make this happen? There were a lot of worries. But we came in with an open mind, and we took on the town. Val, Charles Evers, Nancy, Dave, Oscar — these people we didn’t plan on finding, but we did and it made all the difference. We also had tapped into the media in a great way — two radio spots and a newspaper that really wanted to follow us. Everyone we meet always says “why would you want to film here.” Looking back on our time in MS, we had good reason to film here. Thank you to everyone in Edwards and Vicksburg that made our stay so worthwhile. We will miss you. We will miss your town.

Yesterday, a much deserved day-off came our way. We spent it, as everyone should spend days off, in New Orleans. What a town! There are trams, there is amazing coffee, there is so much music. It’s a really spectacular town. Rogier found his way to the WWII museum and an art gallery. Rob walked around the city, soaking up the life that exists. That’s really the thing that separates New Orleans from other cities — the life. The pulse of the city is always at a fever pitch. It’s incredible. The second you step inside, the music and the colors and the people grab you. It’s infectious. There is nothing small or inhibited about New Orleans, and that’s what makes it great.

Today was spent mostly driving. We did get some great shots on a ferry boat across the Mississippi. For $1, you can take it back and forth. Set up the tri-pod, shot some gorgeous pieces on the water.

In Baton Rouge right now. A gorgeous Embassy Suites hotel. Tomorrow, we have a lot to do. Sleep well. We will see you in the morning.

Yesterday, we had a radio interview with WMPR. It’s one of Mississippi’s premier radio stations, playing blues, R&B, gospel, and soul. The interview was pretty quick, but like a lot of your encounters, it became something even more special.

Charles Evers runs WMPR. Charles Evers is the brother of Medgar Evers. Medgar was a famous Civil Rights activist. His brother, Charles, was there on the front lines with him. Bobby Kennedy, Nixon, Bush, Muhammed Ali — Mr Evers knows them all. He was especially good friends with Bobby Kennedy.

Mr. Evers is a remarkable person. An independent man his whole life, he has started businesses, brought up an amazing family, and has remained an activist. 89 years of age, and he is as strong as ever. What was probably the best thing about Mr Evers was the faith he still had in this country. He believes in America. He believes in what makes it great. It’s very easy to look at how things are going, to get caught up in the media, and to become jaded. Mr Evers has seen oppression, he knows a world where he had to walk on the other side of the road simply because of his skin color. But still, he remains positive. He never gives up. It’s a testament to the human spirit. Mr Evers is a brilliant man, a revolutionary, and despite all the hardship, he has never given up hope. If only we could all be like him.

5Am wake up call, some quick muffins to get us through, and we were on the road. We met up with Dave Gray, who runs a crop dusting business. We met him yesterday, and he was just the kindest man. After some genius rigging by DP Ben, we had the camera set up in the cockpit. Dave flew off into the skies. 11 minutes later, he touched down. We took a look at the footage. It look great. We’re trying to do a little homage to North by Northwest, and we really got it.

The next shots involved Rob and Rogier, standing by the cornfields, chatting as the plane swoops in over their heads. Ben caught some amazing footage. Who would have thought we could get a plane and utilize it for an hour? It’s amazing what you can get, if you just ask. The plane’s wheels a few feet above the filmmakers’ head, Ben grabbing the perfect angle, the Mississippi sun bursting bright — it was spectacular. It seriously looks like the POV shots from flight simulators.

After that, we headed back to JJs Lounge, the little music Gem of Edwards, and met with Vivacious Val. Now, Vivacious Val is the best. She is smart, funny, she has the greatest laugh this side of the South. She is also a brilliant singer. Her song “Hoodoo Woman” was playing in the club and…wow. Speechless. She is so beautiful and so powerful. We just HAD to interview her. Hearing her story was just eye-opening. She is a natural storyteller. It was also a blast to have the newspaper, The Vicksburg Post, stop by.

Tomorrow, Vivacious Val will be back with us at JJs. We’re going to film her as she sings some of her greatest songs. Also, tomorrow, we head back to the airwaves to go on the radio and tell our story.

The last few days have found us taking the scenic route as we head for Mississippi. With a desire to learn more about the Civil Rights Movement, we headed to Montgomery Alabama.

Montgomery is a place dripping with history. It’s incredibly humbling to walk the streets, knowing that this is where so much history has taken place. The streets we walk on are the same that the activists walked on. The churches and the buildings we go through are the same where change was taking shape 60-7o years ago. You walk through a city, and sometimes, you forget what the world did before your feet found the pavement. That’s what Montgomery was for us. We wanted to see where everything changed. Where the Capital, once a beacon of Confederate oppression, towers above the streets of change and progress, somehow, these two opposing forces still coexist. The people, the history, the pulse of life in Montgomery really got to us. Sad we had to leave it.

From there, we went to Selma. Selma, also a big catalyst for MLK’s movement, has seen better days. The economic collapse hit the people hard. You head over the famous bridge to find the Main Street with so many varieties of architecture and personality — it feels like a new world. You get closer, and many of the buildings have “FOR RENT” signs, many are abandoned and broken. It’s troubling to find this vibrant city fallen on hard times. But it’s clear to see that the people still push on, the folks still have a beating heart left in them. There are still the sights and sounds and noises that call to an earlier age of excitement and purpose.

As night fell, we headed to the Elk’s Lodge for some Blues and to meet new friends. We had such a blast. Everyone was dancing and singing. The merriment was palpable. It was encouraging to see the people of this town, who have seen it through both light and dark, still banding together to enjoy the family they created. The smiles never left them. Selma will find a way to bounce back, that’s for sure. With people who care, people who continue to push onward despite the hardships, this town will begin again. The paint will find a new coat, the streets will brighten again, and Selma will be stronger. Stocks can rise and fall, houses can lose their foundation, but you can’t break the community that lives and loves like Selma.